Unfortunately, this book ended up being a disappointment. It started off strong, and I really enjoyed the first part especially, with the war training. But the two other parts did not have the same effect. Some scenes were quite interesting but some other completely threw me off. It was a rather particular experience, and it was not pleasant. The characters could have been more developed. Out of the blue, romances (yes, plural) started to pop out of nowhere and they felt forced and cringe. This book would have been way better without that aspect. It disconnected me from the plot. And the ending felt hollow and a bit cliché.
Also, I thought it was adult fantasy, but it definitely reads like YA.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

This isn't your mother's Mulan retelling.

Meilin, our main character, does not go to war to save an ailing father. She does not go to war to protect her home or her family. She goes because she is sick of the status quo. Because she has her own desires and wants to be free for however long she can. Meilin is not nice, she is not particularly charismatic, she is not really a hero. She's selfish, she doesn't take orders, she trusts too easily. She's also brave, clever and brimming with magic and ambition. Luckily I support women's rights and women's wrongs, so I adore Meilin.

The Night Ends with Fire is a sweeping fantasy, capturing the realities of war as well as the whimsy of a world full of elemental power. It's an incredibly fun read, with Meilin getting into Situations and using her unique skills to get out of them. I will admit that the action sometimes felt lacking on detail and stakes, sometimes passing me by before I even got to grips with the level of peril but I found it an engaging read regardless.

The romance was... fine. Honestly, I feel like a Mulan retelling in 2024 needs a queer love interest especially when we've got two to pick from. It also felt like the romance was for romance's sake. I liked Sky well enough but I wasn't really feeling the chemistry. They seem more like cute besties than potential lovers. And Lei is quite literally the Enemy and not in a cutesy enemies to lovers kinda way.

I'll definitely be picking up the next and am cautiously optimistic to see how the romance unfolds but mostly I'm here for dragons, magic, fighting and Meilin being a badass. She wants it all and by God do I want her to have it.

This first book has everything I don't like about YA books starting with a heroine who is still searching for herself and ending with a love triangle (which I detest) via people who consider being morally excusable to be a sign of great charm. That's probably why I'm not the appropriate target audience for this kind of book, especially if it's the beginning of a series. But I'm sure there are plenty of other people who will enjoy it.

Questo primo libro ha tutto quello che non mi piace dei libri YA a partire da un'eroina che sta ancora cercando se stessa, per arrivare al triangolo amoroso (che detesto) passando per persone che considerano l'essere moralmente eccepibili un segno di grosso fascino. Probabilmente per questo non sono il target adeguato per questo tipo di libro, specialmente se é l'inizio di una serie. Ma sono sicura che ci sono moltissime altre persone che lo apprezzeranno.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

Ok honestly I feel lied to, cause I was promised poppy war and I did not really get it. The writing felt weirdly juvenile for me and the characters were all just…. Kinda there and kinda annoying. I did not give a flying fuck about the main character in the beginning. It’s basically a ya book that got some dark themes and the mc is 18 so let’s slap Adult on that instead. Yea no fuck off I hate that.

The romance did absolutely nothing for me? It kinda felt forced.


The general idea….was ok not gonna lie. Execution? Lacking. I just didn’t connect with The chracters or world it kinda felt rushed, which honestly I usually like being thrown into the action but it took me to long to even tolerate the characters.


But for the overal idea…. And I didn’t hate it. I did have a good enough time, it deserves a 3 star at least.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc! I was truly so happy to get this book. Any kind of Mulan retelling, just count me in.
I have to admit that the pacing felt a little off for me, even though I can’t explain why it felt like that. But, besides that, this book was something so much different than what I expected, and I mean that in a good way.
Yes, it was a Mulan retelling, but with a FMC with much more depth and complexity. Meilin wasn’t acting from simple honor or high moral, she had ambitions, she was selfish, she wanted something more that what life and society expected from her, and it was refreshing to read about a female character that wasn’t necessarily perfect and acted mostly for herself, even while trying to protect the people she loved.
And that ending… my god. I feel like there is so much more that could happen with this story and the characters, and I also have no idea where it is actually going to go. I can’t wait to figure it out.

What does our ambition cost us? Central question to the story and what drives the plot the whole way through.

I was enthralled by this retelling of Mulan's legend entwined firmly with fantasy and history. I particularly appreciated the author's note at the end exploring the different versions of the legend and how they inspired her.

It was initially a bit of a challenge to get into the story as the author throws us in at the deep end with terminology and customs that aren't explained, but I quickly picked up all the important threads and got absolutely wrapped up in the story and where the characters would end up.

I can't wait for the sequel, is it madness or freedom that awaits?

4.5 ⭐

“The Night Ends with Fire” is the first installment of an adult fantasy duology written by K. X. Song and currently in progress.

A territory divided into three kingdoms in perpetual conflict with each other. A new war at the gates. A girl raised to obey, oppressed by the rigid conditions of being a woman, who decides to oppose, flee, disguise herself as a man and enlist in the conflict, driven by desires for freedom, recognition, acceptance and power. A prince loyal, honorable and devoted to his kingdom who makes her heart flutter. An enemy prince, as charming as he is shrewd and devious, capable of shaking her convictions. An intriguing love triangle. A sizzling enemies to lovers. A sweeping forbidden romance. A book inspired by Mulan and Romance of Three Kingdoms. An evocative, lyrical and passionate writing. A fast and compelling pace, accompanied by short chapters. A large and complex world building, full of political games and court intrigues, described in an accurate and vivid way. A fascinating magic system, which includes forbidden magic and the four Cardinal Spirits. An interesting analysis of the figure and role of women, forced to serve, obey and suffer in a society of men. A powerful and sweeping story full of training, fighting, deceptions, lies, secrets, alliances and betrayals. An extremely epic atmosphere. Too many time jumps. Events sometimes rushed, with several convenience situations. A strong, determined, reckless, complex, troubled, and morally gray protagonist portrayed in an excellent way. Interesting secondary characters, though somewhat subdued in some cases.

These are just some of the elements that make up “The Night Ends with Fire,” a novel that completely won me over. From the very first pages I was drawn into the narration, absorbed in an extremely epic world, so much so that I struggled to tear myself away from the pages. I found myself repeatedly laughing, smiling, sighing, swooning, angry and moved, without any moments of boredom or heaviness. In my opinion it is not a perfect book, as mentioned above I perceived several flaws, but it did not bother me and did not affect my very high appreciation. Seriously, I loved it deeply, I cannot express anything but compliments and I am too happy because I had very high expectations! Now, however, I absolutely need the sequel!

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

𝑅𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌: ☆

𝑅𝑒𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑒 𝒟𝒶𝓉𝑒: 2nd July 2024

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodderscape for this e-arc. All thoughts are my own.

This book had a solid idea, but I spent most of my reading with more questions than answers. The history was lacklustre, the dilemma was hard to pinpoint, and the characters just annoyed me. The writing felt very juvenile and disjointed. The plot lacked a cohesive narrative, and there was a lack of consistency.

There was a lot of time jumps which meant that key character development was happening off page. Meilin didn’t feel connected with anyone and while I understood her situation, it made the relationships feel flat. Especially as she spends a lot of the book wanting to ‘belong’ but only had surface level relationships. There was no real meaning behind them; they felt like a checklist. I don’t even want to talk about the love interests because they were very unoriginal and boring. I wouldn’t even call them romances because there was no chemistry or attraction, and all the moments felt so forced. Plus the men were just not great as people, never mind love interests.

There was a really strong emphasis on Meilin being a women in a man’s world, but it was very repetitive and not nuanced in any way. She never attempts to help any woman either, or make any sort of change. Meilin was (apparently) driven by ambition which I would have loved, if she actually did anything ambitious. Her fighting ability seemed to come and go, and every chance she got to involve herself in politics to further herself, she doesn’t engage. She reminds herself that it’s not her business yet wishes to save her people. I genuinely have never been so angry with a character before. I also found it frustrating that Meilin never asked enough questions or found things out for herself. Instead, avoidable things kept happening to her, which was just embarrassing. This book was meant to be about an ambitious girl who wanted to decide her own destiny, but instead gave me an incredibly passive and bland fmc.

My biggest problem was that it didn’t offer anything new to the retelling of Mulan. Perhaps I had the wrong idea of what this book would be about, but I was hoping for something far more original. The fantastical elements of this book were also a let down, as Meilin very rarely engages with any of the powers available to her. In fact, you could remove them and nothing much would be affected. It’s also marketed as ‘Destined to Rebel’ but there was not much rebellion.

I’m sure that other people might enjoy this book but I did not.

I adored the Mulan narrative, therefore this was one of my most anticipated books of the year. Unfortunately, this book didn't exactly work for me, even though it might appeal to some readers. Despite being described as an adult book, the childish tone and simplistic main character gave the impression of a young adult book. Additionally, the plot felt rushed. I put forth my best effort to continue into 20%, but I wasn't enjoying it. For now, it sits unfinished on my shelf, though I may give it another go later.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this e-arc.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of the year, as I loved Disney's Mulan. And I am very grateful to Netgalley and Hodderscape for providing me with this eARC.
Before approaching the book, I didn't know from the premise that the protagonist, Meilin Hai, was driven by greed and ambition rather than a sense of duty. Nevertheless, I was open to a new take on the retelling. I must confess that I struggled with the first 40% of the book, and I can see why some people abandoned it before that point. I considered abandoning it myself. The reason is the writing: it was very rushed, as if (a) it belonged to a draft that had been kept in a drawer, and (b) the author wanted to rush through the story in order to focus on something else that happened afterwards. There was also a lot of narration throughout the book and several time jumps, especially in the first part, which did not allow me to connect with the main character and her relationships with other characters, such as her family and platoon members. In the first 40% she becomes a very well trained soldier without the reader seeing the real effort and learning curve. We are also told from the beginning that Meilin was trained in kung fu by her uncle, but we never see her learning process and improvement. We are told that she is greedy and ambitious, but we don't feel it. We are never exposed to her mindset or understanding of her ambition, other than that she is victimising herself for being a woman and that she deserves to have what men have. This is the point of Mulan, which I loved, but I was annoyed by the way it was handled here. So this book would definitely benefit from more showing than telling.
Also, this book is marketed as adult, but it felt very YA because of the immaturity or impulsiveness of the characters and the lack of description of the setting. A consistent part of the world building is relegated to the chapter headings, which indicates a lack of skill, or it may be part of an author's learning process. Although I might be willing to forgive this in a debut, I prefer the world building to be well integrated into the main text.

"I was fast, I was clever too. Not with words, surely, but in other ways."

"I invoked my ambition. My greed. My undying belief that I was meant for more than this, that I could do so much more than they all believed."

What kept me a bit on the edge of my seat was the interesting magic system with animal spirits manipulating and using the people who own their seals for their own agenda. I thought it was very well done and I am curious to see where it will lead. It was a great foundation and new addition to the plot. I did find it a shame that the addition of the potential love interest(s) felt very forced and cringe-worthy, as it was a very far cry from what the romance was in the original comic.

A few things that annoyed me were the inconsistent naming of people. The story is supposedly set in ancient China and I expect Chinese names. It felt so strange to read about characters named Liu Sky, Sparrow, Red, Autumn, Winter, Plum, etc. Another pet peeve of mine that I have noticed in many Asian books is the use of Chinese words, in this case without any explanation, such as: "you baichi idiot", "haixiao wave", "youtiao". I am aware that the trend these days may be "no footnotes", but I am glad to have a few footnotes to give me an idea of what the author means, rather than having to google them all the time.

Overall, the only aspect that saved this book for me was the magic system, which unfortunately was not enough to make it sufficient, due to too much telling, rushed writing, a lack of characterization of both the main and secondary characters, and a very lackluster romance.

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘏𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘈𝘙𝘊.

A Mulan retelling brimming with female rage, moral greyness, misogyny and magic systems. It's incredibly familiar in terms of story set-up, but leaves any Disney niceties at the wayside in favour of broken bones, childhood trauma, manipulative spirits and battles, both mental and physical. Complex female protagonists are where it's at and I'll always love it when they carve out space for themselves in a world that denigrates and disregards them. Definitely check trigger warnings before diving in.

Our protagonist, Meilin, spends half the novel unconscious or gravely injured and I love that for her. None of this instant recovery rubbish. Our girl is fighting for her life and it 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘴. Fighting physically against opponents twice your size 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘴. Wielding magic you've never trained in 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘴. And doing this all in a setting where being a woman is punishable by death... The inner anguish, anxiety and rage is soul cleansing in a "scorched with molten fire and then doused with seawater" kinda way.

The romance aspect of The Night End with Fire never takes over (in a good way) and the love triangle - the foundations of which are dug and solidified in time for book 2 - feels genuinely balanced. Will she end up with the man that gives her the security that she craved or the man who compliments who she's becoming? I'm excited to see more of their dynamics unfold, but honestly she could burn down the whole world for spite (and them with it) and I would still support her every decision. Yas queen, slay.

There are dream sequences and passages of realm walking within these ere' pages that I found a little hard to distinguish at times, but I suspect that may be down to the eARC formatting and will likely be fixed when it comes out in print. There were also a couple of 'revelations' further down the line that confused me given that we'd been provided with the information much earlier on (and from the protagonist's perspective). Maybe Meilin suffered too many knocks to the head, which resulted in acute and highly specific amnesia? Who knows.

I'm really looking forward to the next book because at the 90% mark I was PANICKING that it wasn't all going to get wrapped up. Silly me for thinking it was a standalone.

There's a lot to recommend here, and if you love badass, complex, beaten, rage-fuelled female protagonists (who, I suspect, could decapitate you with a blade of grass) then this is one to pick up in July!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. I thought this was a very good read. Meilin was a very relatable heroine, and all the characters (including the side characters) felt very well fleshed out. The plot, pacing and world building were also very good, and I loved the little reference to Mulan near the end. Recommended for anyone who loves the Mulan story and Asian inspired fantasy. Looking forward to the next instalment!

The Night Ends With Fire is a retelling of Mulan, but with spirit ghosts and way darker than the disney-movie you probably thought about.

I found the book really easy to get into. Meilin (the MC) is a character I really liked. The writing style was good, I enjoyed it but I wouldn’t say that it was extraordinary.
The magic system is pretty cool, while simple.
Overall I enjoyed the book but I wouldn’t say that I was obsessed with it, I liked the story but I wasn’t too invested for a large part of the book, but it’s still something I really enjoyed and would recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the ARC. 1.5⭐ rounded down.

For a novel marketed as Adult, it could've passed off as YA with its 18-year-old protagonist whose age definitely showed throughout, a lack of complexity in its main characters and conflicts, and overall juvenile writing. It is a shame given that TNEWF has such a refreshing premise to work with, as explained by the author K. X. Song in her acknowledgments: a Mulan retelling where its female protagonist is driven by sheer ambition and desire for personal freedom, rather than filial piety and duty. So we're getting an imperfect heroine railing against a patriarchal system? I was so down for that!

But already early on in the story, I came across the first inkling of disappointment: Meilin is Not Like Other Girls. Unlike other young ladies her age, she was taught kung fu! She knows qigong! She can soar through the rooftops in secret! All this even before she disguises herself to join the army. We are simply told that she has these skills, and the story even beats us over the head to remind us that she's kung fu-trained. For the most part, I don't see why this aspect was necessary to be included at all, or even so early in the story. Her kung fu barely gives her an edge in military training, nor does she use her skills to aid other women in need. Was it to protect herself or her virtue? She simply... has them.

The other disappointment I had with Meilin was how narrative sets it up that she deserves a promotion simply because 1) she trains twice as hard as her comrades, 2) the rest of the men are assholes, and 3) she wants it really, really badly. Instead of, you know, actually showcasing her merits and skill. I desperately wanted to root for her, but she's not giving me much to work with. Meilin wants to rise up the ranks and prove herself to be the BEST, yet throws a fit when she loses a fighting match fair and square. How can she expect to become the best soldier if she's unable to beat the top fighter? It's one thing to be rightfully outraged at her male opponent if he had cheated (which he didn't), but Meilin couldn't accept that maybe she isn't as good as she thinks she is. We're simply told, just like her kung fu, that she's "objectively" more competent than everyone else. We're not shown that she excels at archery or other non hand-to-hand combat skills over her peers. We're not shown she's a better strategist than her comrades. We don't even get to see her use her cunning or ingenuity to make up for her physical disadvantage during a fight. And yet we're expected to want her to gain a leadership position without being shown how she's earned it, because she's nicer.

That's really unsatisfying to me as a female reader.

And then there's my least favorite use of "feminist gotcha", which is Meilin rushing in headfirst and refusing to listen, just because she feels slighted by a more experienced man telling her to use caution and work together. To nobody's surprise, this tends to end badly for her. Another ick for me is Meilin's feminist beliefs, or rather, the lack of them. Conditioned her entire life to believe that women have pre-ordained roles never to step out from, it's unsurprising that she grapples with internalized misogyny herself. Meilin views herself and her rebellious actions as a "perversion". An "abomination", a "depravity". Time and time again, we're privy to these thoughts. Her "rebelling" against the patriarchal culture isn't because she wants to prove that the system is wrong about women, but rather that she's the exception to her gender. Meilin wants to be *accepted* into the system in her own right, in pursuit of her personal freedom. While I can abide by a a heroine's ruthless ambition or selfishness, this on the other hand is one character flaw I never enjoy reading.

All that aside, at the very least, I expected an exciting look into the fantastical portion of this story. Meilin possesses a spirit seal that allows her to tap into the powers of a powerful dragon spirit. She can do mental compulsions on others, and attain some control over water. Yet, this took up only a small part of her journey and she doesn't exactly learn to be competent in her powers. The final confrontation with her counterpart—the host to the phoenix spirit that controls fire—is anticlimactic and not worthy of a showdown that keeps anyone on the edge of their seats.

It's also 2024. A Mulan retelling that doesn't deal with the possibility that the male love interest happens to be bisexual and is also attracted to the male persona of the heroine is a copout.

Overall, I was just bored. I was never gripped by the plot nor its characters, and especially not the romantic interests presented. The only redeeming factors of TNEWF is, unexpectedly, the multiple positive female dynamics between Meilin and the women she encounters.

This novel is all about ambition and power – what would you do to get it and what would it cost you – were very central to the plot and character motivations.

Meilin leaves her family to join the army out ambition and a desire for autonomy. She wants to find a place for herself and not be defined by the men around her. A dangerous ambition as a competent woman in the realm of men upsets the social order.

What stood out for me was that the character thought about the consequences of her choices, what would happen if she stayed, what would happen if she was discovered, and still made the choice to disguise herself because it was the only way to get what she wanted and that was worth the risk.

The book is split into three parts and each part was paced differently which was a bit odd. The second and third parts were a lot faster pace and there wasn’t much development during those sections. The first part felt more developed as time was spent setting the world up and the characters.

I thought the book lost its way in the middle a bit. The introduction of the situationship triangle didn’t fit with the rest of the book and felt very awkward. I hesitate to call it a love triangle as none of the parties actually loved or liked each other.

It was still an amazing book that gripped me from the start. I loved the magical element and the world building, each kingdom had its own history and culture that were distinct, most of the characters were fleshed out and the family and friendship relationships felt organic, it was just the romance that was weird.

Would definitely recommend to people that enjoy historical fantasy.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh my goodness, what just happened?! AHHHH This is my new obsession! This book blew my mind away!!! Wow, just wow!!! And that ending? That acknowledgement?! I'm speechless!!

Meilin is our main character, and she's absolutely amazing. She's ambitious and greedy and determined. She's a force in a world meant to out her down, to cage her into a norm she wants to burn down. She doesn't yield to any man and any being. And yet, through her ambitions, she dreams to belong. To belong with her fellow soldiers, to belong in this misogynistic and cruel society in her own terms. Throughout the book, Meilin does everything she can to reach her goals. Does she always make the right decisions? Perhaps not, but given her circumstances, she always did the best she could. What I really loved about her is that she's self-aware. She knows her goals, she knows her conflicts, she knows her loyalty and when that becomes a fragile thread. I loved that she was loyal to Sky, the Prince, and not her country. She puts her people first, not a country that, to be honest, has only harmed her. I loved this distinction. Did I mention she's ruthless? Meilin gets things done, one way or another.

This book has the best love triangle. Meilin and her two Princes that couldn't have been more different from each other. Sky is deeply dedicated to the crown, his country, his loyalty. He's strategic and an inspiring general. I'm sort of suspicious of those who are so absolutely dedicated to their duty, seven though he's very endearing. Lei is our enemy Prince, and oh, he's an enigma. A very handsome, very competent, and brilliant enigma. His upbringing wasn't rainbows and sunshines as his mother wasn't the queen but a concubine. So you can already imagine the horrible things he had to experience. Trust me, it's even worse. He was refreshing because he was irreverent, vain, funny, flirty, and his opinions don't really match a royal. I have high hopes for Lei. Both Princes are excellent characters for love interests, and the push and pull was amazing. It's truly the best love triangle I've seen.

The plot and world-building are impeccable. It's literally a storytelling perfection. I had to make myself read slower because I didn't want it to end.

At its heart, it's a story about a woman who wants more. About ambition and how much it will cost. And about loyalty to people or ideals?!

If you also loved The Poppy War, we've finally found a novel that is just as good. Truth be told, if you want to read an amazing book, you must read this. It's phenomenal!

4 stars.

The first half of this was extremely rushed and had me worried about dnfing , but the second half won me over and I really enjoyed where the story went. I liked that the author wasn't afraid to let bad things happen to her protagonist. I liked Meilin a lot, which was surprising to me. Although she is technically Not Like Other Girls she doesn't put down other women - her interactions with other female characters are very wholesome. She wants the freedom and even the respect that men enjoy but she struggles internally with that desire, as she has been raised to believe that women should not have those feelings. It makes her relatable while still grounding her in the setting.

I'm still not sure if I would class this as an adult book - while there are scenes portraying heavier stuff like torture, the characters lack complexity and the overall themes of the book were presented very straightforwardly. The book is very fast paced and would have benefitted from slowing down a little to develop the side characters and relationships more. There is also very little description of locations, making some scenes seem to take place in a void.

I liked all the nods and references to Mulan. I've seen some reviewers say the story was too similar to Mulan, but I thought the overall plot and characters were very different.

Lei was hot. I am looking forward to the sequel.

Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

Warning for slight spoilers, but I also didn’t get much further than 30%

I honestly don't remember where I saw this marketed as adult. Did I see it? Regardless, that did greatly impact my expectations. I have certain standards for books categorised as adult.

Whoever responsible for marketing compared this to The Poppy War set her up. I guess thematically, maybe…? But the tone was just too different. These are the similarities I gathered: Some sort of divine entity speaking to her and giving her corruptive destructive tendencies, elemental powers, bad position in society as a woman, running away from marriage, and probably a war to come.

Ignoring the comparison to The Poppy War and whether or not it's adult, I found the book to be too juvenile, even for upper YA, which was very off-putting to me. It was difficult to take it seriously, and the writing felt like bad fanfiction. If that does not bother you, you may have a better time with this and actually get to the end.

Meilin has some super fighting skills for absolutely no reason at the very beginning of the book and keeps going on about her kung fu, and how good she is. The author has her show off all the time with theatrical action scenes. The way the prose went into too much detail about her heroics was super cringe to me.

One day, she meets a Prince who starts flirting with her and tells her she's faster and cleverer than soldiers. After having an internal monologue in the middle of the night, and replaying how she saved him (there really was no need for that, it was already cringe the first time), she decides she's indeed smarter and more skilled (spoiler alert: she gets humbled). So, she decides to join the army. Getting out of her betrothal was an afterthought (it wasn't even mentioned when she was making her decision).

While I did appreciate Meilin's anger towards the sexist, patriarchal culture she was living in, I found it difficult to connect with her character. She mainly cared about herself, her future, and her fate as a woman.

I didn't care about Meilin and there were practically no other characters to care for. Besides the Prince, she barely interacted with or had any close relationships with other characters. She's supposedly friends with a fellow soldier, but they rarely spend time together on page. Her stepmother who she's really connected with, soul sisters or something, was also immediately left behind with her abusive father.

There was hinting towards a romance, but it didn’t really sit right with me. Especially when he acted concerned after whipping her???

In conclusion, I was dissapointed with this one and felt no desire to finish it.

This instantly grabbed my attention when I found out it's a retelling of my favourite Disney character, Mulan. I absolutely enjoyed reading this even though it took a few chapters to fully be engrossed in the story. The characters were likeable

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The blurb for this book intrigued me so I was super excited to get approved for the arc. The book is really a good representation of the difficulties of being a woman and all the condescending we get, but to me it was maybe too much of it in some parts. I also think that Meilin didn't make smart choices in critical moments which contributed to some things going downhill as she was indecisive.

Otherwise, I enjoyed this book a lot it went by really fast and some of the tension with the two love interests had me giggling. I
swooned when Lei said "I protect what is mine" like 😍. I already have my favorite love interest and I'm hardcore rooting for them.

The ending was not really a big cliff hanger, but it gave a really good foundation for the second book and I can't wait to see what happens.